Convertible vacuum sweeper and floor polisher



4 192 Oct 7 E. H. BLANCHARD ET AL CONVERTIBLE VACUUM SWEEPER AND FLOOR POLISHER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed 001:. 25, 1926 JZZ'orv-z ey Oct. 4, 1927.

E. H. BLANCHARD ET AL- CONVERTIBLE VACUUM SWEEPER AND FLOOR POLISHER Filed Oct. 25 1926 2 Shee ts-Sheet 2 Patented Oct. 4, .1927. v

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE,

manner 3. nnmcmnn, or SCHENECTADY, AND nanwm norm, or onmrvm, NEW YORK.

CONVERTIBLE VACUUM SWEEPEB A ND FLOOR POLISHED.

Application filed October 25, 1926. Serial No. 143,869.

Reference may be had to the accompanying drawings, and the reference characters marked thereon which form a part of this specification. imilar characters refer to similar parts in the several figures therein.

The principal object of the invention is to easily and quickly convert a vacuum sweeper into a fioor polisher.

Other objects will appear in connection with the following description.

Fig. 1 of the drawings is a bottom plan view of a machine adapted for use in accordance with our invention with the machine equipt for use as a surface polisher, the handle and dust-bag being partly broken away.

Flg. 2 is a view partly in side elevation and partly in vertical section of the machine, as shown in Fig. 1.

Fi 3 is a view in perspective of the plate lfJor osing the inlet-port to the fan-cham- Fig. 4 is a longitudinal vertical section taken on the broken line 4-4 in Fig. 1, through a broken-away portion of the machine.

Referring to the drawings wherein the invention is shown in preferred form, 1 is the body of the machine which is mounted upon a pair of front wheels 22 and a pair of rear wheels, 33, which wheels are adapted to travel over a floor surface, 4, or the like.

Mounted upon the body, 1, is an electric motor, 5, the case only of which is shown, which motor drives a fan-shaft, 6, rotatory upon a vertical axis.

Electric current for the electric motor, 5, is supplied through a cable, 7, in the usual manner.

Beneath the electric motor, 5, the body of the machine is formed or provided with a fan-chamber, 8, within which is rotative- 1y mounted a .fan, 9, fixed upon the fanshaft, 6.

The fan-chamber, 8, is provided with a bottom inlet-port, 10, which is adapted to be connected as hereinafter described with a passageway or throat, 11, of a brush-chamber, 12, extending across the front end of the machine.

The passageway or throat, 11, extends through the body, 1, of the machine approximately to the inlet opening, 10, in the bottom of the fan-chamber, and is adapted to be completed by means of a removable cap, 12, (shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2) mounted upon the body, 1, by means of studs, on the front end of the cap which ongage respectlve openings in the body, 1, of the machine, and a tongue, on the rear end of the cap adapted to be underlyingly enga ed by a slide, 15, mounted in a suitable sln eway, 16, upon the body of the machine.

By movin the slide, 15, to one side of its posltlon un erlying the tongue, the cap 12 will be disengaged and can be downwardly tilted and its studs, withdrawn from their respective apertures in the body of the machine to release and permit the removal of the cap.

The fan-shaft, 6, extends downwardly through the inlet-port, 10, of the fan-chamber and has fixed upon its lower end a belt pulley, 17, connected by a belt, 18, t extending through the throat or passageway, 11, with a brush, 19, rotatively mounted within the brush-chamber, 12, whereby the electric motor, 5, serves as a common means for driving both the fan and the brush, 19.

The brush, 19, may be a cylindrical brush of any known kind,-a cylindrical brush including numerous bunches, 20, of bristles or brush fibre being shown.

For certain purposes of the present invention, it is desirable that the periphery of the brush, 19, shall engage the floor surface, 4, and the peripheral portion of the brush may be made of any material adapted for the kind of treatment to which it is desired to apply any substance to the floor; any other polishing or abrading material may be substituted for the bristle tufts, 20.

An outlet, 21, leads from the fan-chamher to a dust-bag, 22, shown partly broken away.

The machine is adapted to be propelled over the floor surface, 4, by means of a bandle, 23, in the usual manner.

In carrying out our invention, we provide a closure for the inlet openin 10, of the fan-chamber in the form of a p ate, 24, rovided with an aperture, 25, adapted to c ose- 1y receivethe lower end, 6, of the fan-shaft and having on its forward end downwardly projecting arms, 26, formed with studs, 13", adapted, when the cap, 12, is removed, to

i I invention an engage the respective apertures in the body of the machine which are engaged by the studs, on the ca 12, when the cap is locked in position on t e machine.

The plate, 24, has a rearwardly projecting position to close the inlet-port thereto, as

shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

In the type of machine shown, the closures plate, 24, and the cap, 12, are adapted for alternate use, but for certain purposes of the known form of removable closure, for t e inlet-port of the fan-chamber may be employed.

The operation of the machine is as follows:

When it is desiredto use the machine as anordinary vacuum cleaner or sweeper, the closure-plate, 24, is removed and in place thereof, the cap, 12, is mounted upon the body of the machine as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 2, to complete the throat or passageway, 11, from the brush-chamber, 12, to the inlet, 10, of the fan-chamber, 8.

I The machine is then operated in the usual manner, the brush and fan being rotated by the electric motor, 5, and the dust or dirt is agitated by the brush, 19, and drawn through the throat, 11, from the brushchamber, 12, into the fan-chamber, and then is expelled through the outlet, 21, into the dust-bag, 22, in the usual manner.

The machine is used in the described manner with a brush, 19, of a suitable character for any treatment of the floor surface which involves the removal of dust, dirt or other matter not injurious to the dust-bag,

22, and not injurious to, or tending to clog, the fan, 9. i

In the case of a hard wood floor, it is desirable after removing the dust and dirt therefrom to polish the same by applying wax or the like to the floor surface, and briskly rubbing the wax upon said surface, but'a vacuum or suction sweeping apparatus is not adapted for such a polishing use for the reason that more or less free particles of wax would be drawn into the fan, tending to clog the same and more or less wax particles would be deposited within the dust-bag, 22.

- When it is desired to polish the floor with any substance, such as wax, which would tend to clog or injure the,fan or the dustbag, the cap, 12, can be removed and the closure-plate, 24, substituted therefor, thus closing the entrance to the fan-chamber and eliminating the suctional action of the machine through the throat or passageway, 11. This is readily accomplished by moving the slide, 15, back from beneath the tongue,

on the cap, 12, withdrawing the cap from the machine and replacing the cap with the closure-plate, 24, secured in position by engagement of the slide, 15, with the lug, 27, on the plate, as shown by solid lines in-Figs. 1 and 2.

The closure-plate, 24, may be made in one piece or as shown in Fig. 3, it may be divided along its longitudinal middle.

When the closure-plate, 24, is made in one piece it is necessary when applying it to the machine to disengage the fan-belt, 18, from the fan-shaft pulley, 17, and the belt may be made sufiiciently elastic to permit it to be stretched upon and off from said pulley;

In machines of the general type shown in the drawings, the brush-roll is rotatively' position shown by solid lines in the draw ings, to the position indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 4, in which dotted position, when the belt, 18, is disengaged from the fan-shaft pulley, 17, the trunnions of the brush-roll can be slid out from the slotted bearings, 31, in the yoke, 29, to remove the brush-roll when desired.

Brush-rolls having peripheral surfaces of difl'erent formand materials may thus be mounted within the brush-chamber to adapt the machine for the desired treatment of the floor surface.

By employing the divided plate, 24, shown in Fig. 3, removal of the fan-belt from the fan-shaft pulley, 17, is unnecessary, the two members of the plate being applied on opposite sides of the fan-shaft and the divided tongue secured by the slide, 15, in the same manner that the integral tongue is secured as above described.

By the use of our invention, a suction cleaner or sweeper can by slight additional expense be rendered convertible into a floor waxer and polisher to take the place of floor waxing and polishing machines, which are quite expensive and cumbersome.

What we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. The combination with a machine having a brush-chamber; a floor-engaging brush rotatively mounted in said brush-chamber; a fan-chamber provided with a bottom inletport connected with the brush-chamber by a throat; a fan-shaft extending from the fan-chamber through said port into said throat; and a fan on the fan-shaft within the fan-chamber; of a removable "closure for said port, said closure being provided with anopening to closely receive the extended portion of the fan-shaft.

2. The combination with a machine having a fan-chamber provided with a bottom inlet port; a brush-chamber; a passageway leading from the brush-chamber approximately to the port in the fan-chamber; a

brush rotatively mounted in the brushfor closing said port and detachably conchamber; a fan-shaft extendin from the nected with the fan-chamber. fan-chamber downwardly throng said port; In testimony whereof, we have hereunto means for rotating the fan-shaft; and a belt set our hands this 16th day of October, 1926.

5 connection between the lower end of the fanshaft and said brush extending through said ERNEST H. BLANCHARD. passageway; of a fan-shaft-receiving plate DARWIN MOTT. 

